With Torn Up Pages
by one-regret-103
Summary: AU Sasuke's on the road to recovery-both physically and mentally. But with trouble on the horizon and both new and old enemies resurfacing, will he ever be able to lead a normal life? Sequel to It's Time To Let It Go.
1. Prologue

**With Torn-up Pages **(Sequel to It's Time to Let it Go)

**Warnings: None for now. Rated for some low-key swearing at most. Oh, and later chapters will be written in third person, not first. **_**Can **_**be a stand alone, but things will make more sense if you've read ITTLIG.**

**Disclaimer: Have not and probably never will own the Naruto characters or anything relating to them.**

**Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to _se-tar_**, **because of all the help she's given me, and not sugar-coating her words to make me _feel_ better. So thanks!**

Prologue

When I was a kid, I used to wonder about things. I'd wonder why the sky was blue, how clouds stayed in the air, how lights worked, so on and so forth. More often than not, I'd keep these wonderings to myself, maybe do a little research on my own, but mostly I just left well enough alone. It wasn't that I was afraid, or shy, to voice my opinions, quite the contrary. I'd be the first to argue my side in something I believe strongly in.

But I was, more or less, a brilliant kid, one who was assumed to know everything already. If I were to ask my teachers, they'd be less impressed by my intelligence. If I were to ask either of my parents, they'd just tell me to ask the other. I couldn't ask any of the kids in my class, because they knew less than I did. So often I kept these thoughts to myself.

Until I remembered that there was still someone who could answer me, who would put away what they were doing just to listen to me ask pointless, who didn't judge my questions by intelligence, or lack thereof, or eloquence asked with. My older brother. My know-all, silent, deceptively caring, and _genius _older brother. The older brother whose shadow I was forced in at a young age, though I didn't mind. Much. The older brother who quickly became my friend, my only friend, and my confidant.

As we grew older, we grew closer. And though I had my friends, as he had his, we were still best friends. I still came to him with my silly wonderings, and he began to add his as well. But no matter what, we were there for each other for everything, every time.

And we all know how long _that _worked out.

* * *

When I was a young child, I had a very low threshold for pain. I'd stub my toe and cry until the throbbing stopped a few minutes later. Normally I'd cry alone, as there weren't often people in my house to hear me. But sometimes my mother was there to comfort me, or my father would ask me if I were all right in that gruff way of his. Though it was often more _comfortable _to be alone in my moments of weakness.

But I had again forgotten about the most important person in the house, beside myself, my brother. With no questions asked, no patronizing comments, no talking at all usually, he'd patch up my scrapes and cuts. First cleaning them with disinfectant, then covering them with a clean gauze or a Band-Aid –depending on the injury- and placing a kiss over the wound. And as I grew older, the kiss turned into a hair ruffle, then finally to a light poke on the forehead.

Over the years though, me tolerance had greatly expanded. So much so that I no longer needed anyone to patch up my mistakes. I could endure more cuts and scraped, purely child-curiosity caused, and soon the only real pain I felt was that which resided deep within my own heart. The pain of the _second _child, of being the person everyone wanted to be around but never take the time to get to know. I became, in essence, my own cliched worst enemy.

_I _was the cause of my pain, which was the start of my downhill fall. I began to hate myself, but could not find it in me to resent the cause of me inner turmoil, my brother. But those thoughts, those self-loathing, angry thoughts flew the coop when my world crashed down around me. Leaving everyone else fallen, save me, standing alone as I noted those who had wanted me so badly, now shied away, like I was infected.

And so I left. It wasn't like there was really anyone to miss me after I was gone.

* * *

When I was younger, I had a few… embarrassing quirks. For example, I had the bad habit of being completely unaware of my surroundings. Someone would walk up behind me, not quietly either, and I'd jump right out of my skin. Of course I grew out of that fairly quickly, as a few of the other kids at the school had taken to calling me "Jumping Bean." Don't even ask why; as I said earlier, these weren't the brightest crayons in the box.

A second embarrassing quality was that I had the habit of really latching onto things. For the first four years of my life, I had this raggedy old blanket that I'd carry everywhere. The only reason I stopped was that I had dropped it off the side of the boat when we were on vacation. I also latched onto people. First it was my parents, but after they made it clear that _they were busy, _I turned to the last member of our "happy" family, who was again, my older brother. Whenever we were home, I'd follow him around the house like a lost puppy. Until he died, that is.

Another thing, not quite a quirk, but more of a trait, was I was unfailingly naïve. But that was only when it came to family and close friends. If a stranger were to tell me something, I was always suspicious of their intentions. So everything my friends would say, I'd believe, with a little doubt on the more far-fetched ideas, but I'd still believe them. Everything my brother would say to me, however, would be taken directly as fact. I wouldn't question a word out of his mouth, and taken the advice directly to heart.

And everyone knows it's the naïve that will believe all the lies spewed towards them from the one they trust most.

* * *

When I was a young teen, I lived my days alone, waiting for something to come by and change me. Something to help me give meaning to my seemingly meaningless existence. I would pass through my days with people, who only pretended to care about my wellbeing, until I couldn't stand the piteous stares, the people who would talk behind their hands about the _poor tragedy _of what happened, when they assumed I couldn't hear.

So when I was gone, I could finally breathe, the oppressive air that was surrounding me dissipated and I was able to live my life, the way _I _wanted. Not under the watchful eyes of those who knew me, my family name, and "worried" after me when remembering the inheritance I was sure to get when I came of age. All those who didn't give me the time of day when my protégéous brother was alive began crawling all over me, confessing their sympathies for my losses.

I was alone, I was free, and though my greatest fear back then was being left behind, completely alone, I welcomed it, embraced the fear and grew stronger.

* * *

When I was in the hospital, I was so overwhelmed that I thought I would burst. The people, the caring, and the unimaginable _pain _of it all. I never thought that people could actually care for _my _wellbeing, and not just for my family name or eventual inheritance. Then there was the overwhelming pain of being broken down; down but not out, and of being so close to death. My body hurt, hurt more than anything else I had put it through thus far, and yet I still couldn't seem to give up.

And what pained me even more than being _run over by a car, _was finding out my dead brother was actually alive, and chose to stay away. Oh yeah, _that _hurt.

* * *

Now, as I sit in my room to my now shared house, pondering my excuse for an existence, I can't help but fell as if I'm missing something. Something wrongfully overlooked, and now I have to suffer the consequences of my oversight. Something that was sure to change my life as I know it, something I'm not sure if I want to find out.

* * *

**A/N: And the long awaited sequel is officially out. It'll take a while before I can come out with chapters regularly, because I still haven't finished the outline. But this just came to me so suddenly that I just had to write it. And next week is finals, so please just be patient with me; as soon as school is over, I'll have all the time in the world to write (more so than before, anyways). **

**Thanks for everyone who reviewed It's Time To Let It Go, and those who voted on my poll! Even though a yaoi pairing **_**did **_**win, nobody specified on what pairings, so I chose for there to be no romance. That and I didn't really want to write romance into this story, it just wouldn't fit in with how I've developed the characters.**


	2. This New Life

**A/N: Ahh, I have missed this story sooo much! Enjoy this short (in my opinion) chapter!**

Chapter I

"Sasuke?" a hesitant voice called out from the kitchen.

The boy in question didn't move a muscle from his sprawled out position on the couch. He couldn't move even if he wanted to; after days of being incredibly uncomfortable and in pain, he had _finally _found a position to lay in that didn't exacerbate any of his healing wounds.

It was an incredibly awkward position, but it was blissfully comfortable. One leg was draped over the back of the couch, and the other was perfectly straight and propped on a pillow. His torso was turned just enough not to pull the stitches while still allowing him to lay on his chest, putting enough pressure onto his broken ribs to null the pain, but not cause anymore. His arms splayed out, one over the side of the couch, the other over his head, which was tucked neatly under a pillow. "What _now_?" was the muffled reply to the man's query.

The once active kid had thought he'd go positively stir crazy, not being able to move for so long, but he had taken an extreme liking to being lazy. Not that he'd ever admit to it, though. It was… somewhat relaxing.

Kakashi, his new (temporary) guardian, walked into the room and, as Sasuke could just barely see out of the corner of his eye, was carrying a very satisfied Nox. "I don't think your cat likes me very much. Even after almost two weeks, this… monster still is scratching the hell out of my arms when I feed him."

"Well," Sasuke began, still not moving, "For starters, he doesn't like people calling him a "monster." Cats are a very good judge of character; they can smell your fear."

"No, that's dogs, dogs are a good judge of character and can smell fear. And I am so much more of a dog person…" he trailed off as Nox began squirming to get free. Kakashi dropped him and the cat bounded over to Sasuke, but not before taking a good-natured swipe at the man's leg. "See!"

Nox settled for sitting daintily on Sasuke's back as Sasuke addressed Kakashi, not unlike a parent would a child. "You're right, Nox must hate you. What was I possibly thinking?"

Kakashi just rolled his eye and left the room in a huff, but with a smile. When he'd first arrived, Sasuke barely spoke, let alone joke. He assumed that Nox was a big part of that equation; he had been an icebreaker of sorts for the two.

The reason Sasuke had been so distant at first, was not only his intense dislike for human contact in general, but he hated the thought of "being looked after." He'd been living just fine on his own until then, so having an older figure was uncomfortable to say the least.

And the only reason why he was better with it now, better, not accepting, was because he refused to let himself think of himself as incapable. He had to think of it as a "friendship," if only to save his sanity.

Nox began purring into the base of his neck that made him feel incredibly lethargic. He knew that once he was better, he'd be so sick of sleeping. As it was, it already annoyed him, but he was just… so… tired…

* * *

As Sasuke was hobbling to the bathroom, a few days later, his eyes landed on a particular nasty sight. Get Well presents. The entire end table beside the door was covered in fake sympathy cards from classmates from the school he was currently enrolled in, as well as his previous school. But did they stop with cards? Hell no.

There were candies, none of which Sasuke were specifically partial to, so Kakashi had taken it upon himself to eat it. All. There were also care packages with various fruits and other things from the people who knew him more. Baked goods were also received, but those made their home in the kitchen and their numbers were quickly diminishing.

Teachers also sent "care packages," but instead of anything fun inside them, it was just the work he was missing. Oh the joy.

Most of them were given in person, but after the seventh time a group of giggling girls had come to the door, even Kakashi got annoyed. Even though at first he'd thought it was funny, and heckled Sasuke about it, it soon lost its humour since _he _was the one that had to answer the door as Sasuke was obviously incapacitated.

So soon after that, they just didn't answer the door and the "well-wishers" finally got the hint. And they still left their presents on the doorstep, and soon quite a pile had accumulated.

Honestly, Sasuke thought they were idiots to spend money buying things for someone who they've probably never spoken to, but Sasuke doesn't usually talk to people so the thought is sort of moot.

* * *

So, not only did those "well-wishers" come by, but his "friends" did as well. And no matter what Sasuke said to Kakashi, the man always opened the door for them, no matter what Sasuke was doing, or if he was even conscious.

Sasuke was laying there on the couch a couple of days later, in the earlier found comfortable position, and his ear buds in. He had 'Jimmy Eat World's, _Sweetness, _playing at maximum volume and was mouthing the lyrics along with the artist. So of course he wasn't going to hear anyone, even if they came up and screamed in his ear.

But when the song ended and a quieter sound began, he heard faint chatter. He cracked one eye open and shifted enough to look at the crowd.

Both Hinata and Sakura were conversing quietly from the chairs, Shikamaru was asleep on the floor, and Gaara was looking through one of his sketchpads. Sasuke paused his music and ripped the buds from his ears in one motion with his uninjured arm.

His eyes met Kakashi's one, who of which was sneaking into the kitchen, and there was absolute mirth hidden in the slate gray eye. If Sasuke had been able to see the man's face, he'd have seen the huge smirk he knew was lurking there.

He mockingly waved goodbye and Sasuke's glare held certain death, a glare that the man seemed immune to, as he was completely affected by it. Politeness gone, (did he ever really have any to begin with?) Sasuke asked harshly, "What the hell are you all doing here?"

Not one to be so harsh to people who probably didn't rightly deserve his anger, Sasuke couldn't help the angry tone that slipped out. He wasn't angry with them, per say, just at Kakashi for letting them in without even telling him.

The conscious occupants of the room finally realized he was actually aware of their presence and conversation stopped. "Oh, Sasuke, how are you feeling today?" Sakura asked, diplomatically ignoring his previous statement and disregarding the angry tone.

"Annoyed! I swear, if someone asks me how I'm doing one more time…" he trailed off, letting the threat hang, this time with nobody disregarding the angry tone, as it seemed he was serious this time.

A tense silence followed, broken only by the almost silent snores of the sleeping boy, as Sasuke glared at the only two whom were looking at him, making him only vaguely uncomfortable.

After another minute or two, Hinata cleared her throat and spoke up, amused tone evident. "How is it that you can lay like that? It looks mighty uncomfortable…"

"Not to mention, it should be physically impossible to move like that, especially if the person is injured…" Sakura added under her breath.

Sasuke shrugged awkwardly. "I don't know, but it's the only comfortable position one _can _get on this lumpy couch." It _was _a very difficult position to get back into and out of though, so he only really ever moved when he absolutely had to. And if he moved too quickly out of it, he got major vertigo and gets to the point of almost passing out. But he doesn't mention any of this, instead opting for silence.

It got fairly quiet then, but it was not a tense of awkward silence, just a genial quiet. At one of Shikamaru's surprisingly powerful snorts, waking the boy into confusion, both Hinata and Sakura laughed, hard. Gaara smirked and even Sasuke cracked an amused smirk while the previously sleeping boy collected his bearings. He muttered a quiet, "Troublesome," and moved around for the elusively comfortable position.

Sasuke, taking pity on him and knowing firsthand how uncomfortable the floors were, tossed one of his unused pillows at Shikamaru, landing squarely on hi stomach. Shikamaru said an appreciative thanks and got comfortable. Within a minute, he was softly snoring again.

Loud and erratic knocks interrupted the peaceful silence once again, just as Sasuke was beginning to doze off. His eyes snapped open, settling immediately into a glare. With people comes the wretched question. He watched as Kakashi went to answer the door, amusedly saying, "Pretend like I'm not even here," causing numerous eye rolls.

Behind the door, it seemed, was Naruto, who had errands right after school to run before he could come. Sasuke glared at him, just daring him to ask. "How… can you sit like that?! It looks so uncomfortable!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, remotely thankful for not asking what he thought Naruto was going to. Not feeling the need to explain himself again, he settled with the bare minimum, "I just can, comfortably."

"Oh, I see," he replied, taking a seat in a chair he pulled over and placed in between Gaara and Sakura. "So how are you feeling?"

Sasuke sprung into movement, reaching out to try to strangle the blonde, without taking into consideration his injuries. Murder burning brightly in his eyes, he made it to an almost standing position before the vertigo took effect, making him dizzy and unbalanced. Not that he was balanced before, with all the casts littering his body, but more unbalanced. He just barely caught himself before he crumpled into an undignified heap on the floor. He sank heavily back into the couch and settled with glaring murderously at Naruto.

Naruto was gaping, Shikamaru snoring, Gaara smirking, and Hinata and Sakura, weren't concerned, no, but trying in vain to stifle their laughter. "We don't ask him _that_ question," Hinata supplied helpfully.

"Yeah, it's a touchy subject for Sasuke here," Sakura added.

Sasuke just continued to glare as his head continued to spin.

* * *

Evenings were… awkward to say the least. Kakashi, being the amazing chef he is, only knew how to make toast… and cereal. And since being mobile enough to cook dinner was still out of the realm of possibility, Sasuke wasn't able to cook anything. So they lived on TV dinners and take-out.

After dinner, Kakashi would normally read and watch TV while Sasuke would catch up on schoolwork, draw, or listen to music. Then night would roll around and Kakashi would go upstairs to one of the guestrooms that he'd claimed upon entering. Sasuke, since he still couldn't walk upstairs with his crutches, took domain over the couch and slept there.

It wasn't comfortable; to spend so much time on that lumpy couch, but Sasuke still couldn't move too much, so he just had to deal with it.

Much later at night, only every few days, Sasuke would get his late night visitor, other than Nox's occasional needs to me scratched. No, this visitor was more of the human variety, and he only came when he was absolutely positive the other occupant of the house was asleep.

It was his brother. His brother, the thought dead Uchiha eldest son, Uchiha Itachi. They didn't really talk much, neither were really ones for words, never had been. But there had been something bothering him about the way they acted with each other.

Of course he hadn't forgiven the man for _leaving, _and didn't act like he did, but there was still something. Something else that was between them. Sasuke wasn't sure that was really it, but then again, he wasn't really sure of much concerning the enigmatic elder Uchiha.

Their topic of conversation tended to revolve around Sasuke, too. Itachi wanted to know every little thing that happened in Sasuke's life when he was not present. And Itachi was craftily evasive when Sasuke tried to learn about him.

So yeah, at times Sasuke was unsure of his brother's behavior. "Unsure" because he had not yet thought of the word suspicious. And really, what would there be to be suspicious of?

Staying conscious for too long of a time at once was still impossible, as he was still taking pain pills that made him drowsy. And though the doses were getting gradually smaller, he still couldn't stay awake for Itachi's entire visit.

Every time he woke up, after trying _so hard _not to fall asleep, Itachi was nowhere to be seen. Every time.

It left Sasuke with a dull ache in his chest, the resonance of an unknown emotion, followed by thoughts that moved too quickly to catch. They were alarming, as if trying to warn him, or maybe to just get his attention to a topic he was blind to.

And one morning, he bolted upright, despite the vertigo, akin to what happened just the day before. He finally was able to name that feeling.

Betrayal.

* * *

**A/N: I'm wicked sorry that this is so late. But life, laziness, and a new obsession (Final Fantasy) played a huge factor. I put it off for weeks, and then I popped it out in less than two days. Weird, I know, but that's how I write. I'd like to thank **_**se-tar **_**for helping me with this chapter, and with keeping to my original story line. I'd also like to thank all the readers and reviewers for such a positive response to the prologue, I never in my wildest dreams expected such a turn out, so thanks!!**

**And finally, I'll be out of town for the next week or so, with no internet whatsoever, so I likely won't reply to any reviews, or get the chance to update again. I will, however, update when I come back, by Wednesday the 23****rd****. **

**One last thing, I got a new FF account, and I have posted a couple of one-shots (2 at the moment) that I've had on my computer. PM me or something if you want it.**


	3. Kakashi's Cooking

**A/N: Sorry for the lateness, and I feel I'll need to explain something. The structure of this story will be as follows: one chapter pertaining to the plot line, then a chapter on various character development that will have little to nothing to do with the plot line besides the aforementioned, then repeat. Meaning that these chapters will probably be a little shorter.**

Chapter II

Beep, beep, beep!

"Shut up you infernally annoying piece of hardware!" a voice yelled from the general vicinity of the now smoke filled kitchen. A yell that promptly woke the figure that was absolutely _not _sleeping on the couch into realizing the danger that came about when Kakashi was left alone in the kitchen.

Sasuke heaved an over dramatic, longsuffering sigh before slowly rising into a sitting position. He stared incredulously at the thick black clouds billowing out from his kitchen. The fire alarm was avidly protesting the continuation of cooking, if the increasingly frantic beeps were anything to go by.

In the kitchen, Kakashi flung the windows open in hopes of dissipating the noxious fumes that had begun to build up from his obvious failed attempt at cooking. And he just _knew _that cat was laughing at him. He was sure it had sabotaged this cooking attempt in some way. He didn't bother to dignify the happy cat sitting on the counter with a retort, he just put his smoking concoction in the trash with a sigh. He had followed the directions to the dot, and somehow he _still _ruined it!

But he didn't let this sixth failed attempt deter him. He pulled out a different recipe he'd printed off from thee internet and looked it over. Chicken Caesar Salad didn't sound too hard, and with minimal cooking required, he hopefully wouldn't burn anything this time. But before he could cook anything else in this kitchen, let alone be able to breathe fresh oxygen, he needed to air it out. He moved for the door, ignored fire alarm still blaring, but as he left, he came inches away from pummeling into Sasuke.

"Woah!" he said, narrowly avoiding the irate Uchiha glaring up at him. "What?" he asked in response to the unasked question hanging between them. He took in the ruffled hair and wrinkled T-shirt and answered his own question, alarm still ringing in his ears. "I woke you?"

Sasuke's glare lightened stubbornly as he awkwardly crossed his arms over his chest, staying balanced on the crutches. "I wasn't sleeping." His gaze shifted to over Kakashi's shoulder, immediately loosing its heat and gaining an amused sarcasm. "What'cha cooking?"

"Nothing now," Kakashi replied, not amused that he was being mocked by a kid more than half his age. Really, was respecting your elders just that unheard of? "I _was _cooking dinner, but then your cat sabotaged it…" he trailed off, realizing now how utterly stupid he sounded. Stubborn to the core as well, he crossed his arms over his chest, just daring Sasuke to say something.

"Oh. I see," was the loaded reply, sadistic mirth only barely repressed in his voice. Nox decided to intervene now, taking a playful swipe at the trailing burnt apron Kakashi held in a wrought-iron grip, glaring at the cat. A hiss and playful swish of his tail and Nox left them alone, settling down in the resonating warmth of where Sasuke had just been laying.

"Anyway," Kakashi said, eager to change the subject, "The reason I came out was to ask you if you had any fans. I'd like to get the air in there," he jerked his thumb over his shoulder, "to circulate. Maybe to be hospitable enough that I can cook in it?"

Sasuke smothered a snort and shook his head, indicating a negative. "All there is is the ceiling fan. Sorry," he added as if an after thought.

Kakashi took on an astonished expression. He craned his neck over his shoulder, not bothering to take the effort to turn around, and gaped. By golly, there _was _a fan there. He quickly schooled his features, but the damage was done; Sasuke saw the astonishment.

Instead of mirthlessly mocking his elder, Sasuke chose to take pity on him, but he made sure to remember this moment for future reference. He pointed toward the light switches by the doorframe. "Middle dial controls the speed. And please, do something about that damn beeping."

And with that, Sasuke disappeared down the hall and Kakashi clicked with wonder the middle dial. The air immediately began to circulate and clear, much to Kakashi's chagrin. "Smart ass," he said under his breath.

* * *

A hand hovered hesitantly over a spice he didn't know if he should add to the pleasantly grilling chicken. The voice behind him, however, had a different opinion, and also succeeded in scaring the bejesus out of Kakashi, who'd thought he was alone.

"I wouldn't use Cayenne pepper, it wouldn't compliment the salad very well." Kakashi spun around to find Sasuke sitting at the table, eyeing Kakashi's wandering hand distrustfully. "I'd use the lemon herb, if anything."

Kakashi moved his hand and tapped the top of the container labeled, "Lemon Herb," and at Sasuke's nod, he picked up it up curiously. He read the label and added the recommended amount, looking up to Sasuke for and other instructions. But all Sasuke did was nod satisfactorily and lean back in his chair. "Now what, Master Chef?"

Sasuke restrained the urge to stick out his tongue childishly, instead he just rolled his eyes. "You let it simmer for a few minutes. Then you're done with the chicken." Things lapsed into an awkward silence, only noises being the sizzling chicken and the dying beeps of the kitchen's fire alarm.

The silence stayed, neither occupants of the room feeling the need to break it for any particular reason. Kakashi set about cutting various vegetables for the salad as Sasuke watched on boredly, obviously sick of doing absolutely nothing.

It was only when the chicken started to smell done, over done more like, that Sasuke spoke up, as Kakashi seemed too busy making his carrots all exactly the same size to notice the chicken was beginning to burn. "You may want to check on the chicken."

Kakashi let loose a comical "Eeep!" and dropped he knife, rushing for the pan. He scraped the chicken from the pan and onto a plate with an unsatisfied scowl. The bottom was a little burnt, but a good shot for his "first" time, he figured proudly. _'Sixth time the charm, eh?'_

Kakashi, as he worked, didn't realize how far away Sasuke was. His mind was obviously miles away, a thoughtful but carefully blank expression settled unconsciously on his features as softly as his chin rested in his palm. So far away, he only vaguely noticed Kakashi putting a plate in front of him and moving his crutches out of the way. Belatedly, he said his thanks carelessly.

It was then Kakashi noticed how far away Sasuke was, he didn't often say thank you like that. Usually it was more forced, as if he had to remember to say it. But Kakashi didn't say anything about it, he let it slide; it wasn't much of a surprise the boy had a lot on his mind. With everything that's happened, he would have been _more _surprised if Sasuke wasn't so thoughtful. But really, what did he know?

Sasuke was broken abruptly from his thoughts when he tried Kakashi's concoction. He gagged, choked, and finally swallowed it down with watering eyes. "I thought you didn't add the Cayenne pepper?"

Kakashi was coughing as well as he looked incredulously over at the pan. "I didn't!" His eyes widened comically as he took in the image his demise. Sasuke let out an unwelcomed and uncontrolled snort of laughter that he converted into a hacking cough to save face.

There was Nox, in all his shining glory, sitting on the counter looking deceptively innocent, tail shifting gracefully behind him. And what was that innocent tail _touching?_ He had apparently knocked over the spice, as well as the cap, and was gently sweeping it with his tail in the direction of the empty pan.

With nothing short of murder burning brightly in his eyes, Kakashi blindly reached out to strangle the nimble cat, but was stopped short by the crutch laying on the floor, tripping him into making an intimate acquaintance with the floor. They must've fallen over without him noticing. He continued lying on the floor, embarrassed like never before. The icing on the cake was when Nox crawled over to him, licked spice off his cheek cheekily, and sat down on his back, looking smugly up at Sasuke.

Sasuke couldn't help it; he laughed. The sight of Nox overcoming a grown man like that was too much and he just had to laugh.

Kakashi looked up in shock. In the short time he'd been living here, he'd never heard Sasuke laugh quite like that. Uninhibited and genuinely amused laughter with no sarcastic mirth or malevolence behind it. He exchanged a look with Nox then promptly whapped his forehead and rolled his eyes. This cat was definitely stripping away his sanity, piece by aggravating piece.

Sasuke calmed down enough to steady his breathing, random chuckles disrupting its original flow. He stood unsteadily and hobbled over to the two. He bent and Nox took it as an opportunity to hitch a ride. But he surprised Kakashi by jutting out his hand in attempt to help the man stand up. He took it gratefully, careful to not pull the boy down with him and stood. He nodded his thanks and glared defiantly at Nox.

"I told you that cat was sabotaging my cooking!" he said angrily, pointing a vexed finger at Nox.

Sasuke's smile fell into a smirk as they both sat back down again, carefully pushing the chicken off the salad. Cayenne, lemon and garlic pepper really doesn't mix very well. "I'm sorry. I don't know _why _I didn't believe you earlier."

"Damn straight," Kakashi muttered, pouting. He didn't bother watching his language; Sasuke was definitely old enough to know swears, and plus, he wasn't the boy's father and didn't really have the right to police someone without being called a hypocrite.

Kakashi, being a kid at heart, pouted his way through dinner, looking up only to glare at Nox. Also, he took covert glances at Sasuke's amused, but again thoughtful, expression.

When the meal was finished, Sasuke awkwardly helped Kakashi do the dishes, then sat back down on the couch, pulling out his laptop. With fingers dancing nimbly across the keys and the light from the screen caressing his features, Kakashi had no idea that what he was looking at was the spitting image of Itachi, only a few years younger.

* * *

**A/N: I apologize for it being so short, I just couldn't seem to drag it out any longer. It didn't seem right. Thanks for all the reviews for the last chapter!**

**Ah, don't expect an update much before August 8****th****, because I have various plans and a friend of mine will be staying for a while. But after that, I will be able to start updating fairly regularly, once a week or so.**

**OH, one final thing. For those who enjoyed LRC, and like Final Fantasy VII:AC, will enjoy LRC Take Two by Genetic Anomaly. It's amazing. (HINT: IT'S BY ME!) Yeah, I'm advertising my own work, I'm that sad.**


	4. Paranoia

**A/N: Heh, oops? It's way late, and way short, and I apologize for that! I haven't forgotten about this story, and it will begin to be continued on a semi-regular basis. I hope…**

Chapter III

A tired hand rubbed across fatigued features illuminated by a computer screen. Itachiclosed his programs with a disgusted groan - weeks of research and development and things were still going nowhere.

Leaning back in his chair and staring blankly in the space just above his screen, Itachi once again felt the urge to sigh. He must be getting older, with the amount of sighs - not to mention headaches - he's been doing lately.

He massaged the bridge of his nose roughly, knowing he shouldn't take any more pills for the pressure in his skull - he already had twice the healthy dosage in his system at the moment. Which was probably not a good thing, he reasoned logically as he pulled out the medicine bottle from his coat pocket. _'I'll probably develop an ulcer at the consistency I'm taking these. Either that or just a strong addiction,' _he thought wryly, swallowing the pills dry.

Who would've thought living as a dead man was going to be so stressful? As logic dictates, one would think it _should _have made movement easier for him, allowing him to get out more and do what he was best at – intel gathering. There was only so much he could find out on his limited access computer, even if he did have the best programs. If a computer wasn't connected to a network, he couldn't access it from his laptop. But if he could go and _find _the computer with the information he needed on it, he could get the dirt within minutes.

But instead of being able to go out and quickly find the information, he was being cooped up for reasons unknown. He _knows _that it's best that he sticks to the shadows and out of sight, but _this _was borderline ridiculous. It was like a jail cell, not a safe house, and he knows it.

What he didn't know was "why". Why, after all the work he did to join this infernal syndicate, was he not _doing _anything? After everything _Leader _had done to get Itachi to work for him.

And Itachi had always hated puzzles.

* * *

After pacing around the small house, waiting for the little white drops of heaven to kick in, Itachi collapses face first on the bed, not remotely tired. But he did have "work" he was avoiding and pleaded the fifth, saying he was tired.

For once he was alone, which seemed to be becoming quite a rarity. Someone was always around, saying they were keeping him company since he was never allowed out during the day. But even when he said he wanted to be alone, gotten to the point of violence with the need for peace and quiet, nobody would leave.

It was almost as if they _had _to be there.

As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Itachi paused before quickly discarding the notion as folly, berating himself for even thinking something so foolish.

Itachi deftly moved onto another topic that had been occupying a good portion of his mind as of late: Sasuke. A bit more specifically: Sasuke's injuries and their origins. It disturbed him to no end that he _still _didn't know _anything_ about the accident. Everyone seemed to think it was the rival cartel, Oto, but Itachi held very quiet reservations about it.

It was said to be done to bring him out of hiding, but Itachi didn't buy it. That couldn't have been the only reason to almost kill his little brother, very narrowly avoiding getting both groups exposed.

But even Itachi, with his protegeal genius, was hard put to give another reason. He didn't remember _doing _anything against the group, even when he was just doing freelance work.

The perpetual headache behind his eyes gave a particularly vindictive throb and Itachi groaned, scrunching his eyes up tight. He knew, for sure, that the amount of concentrated headaches wasn't healthy. Hell, just the other day, he had woken up with the worse migraine of his life and, considering the last few months full of them, that was really saying something. Barely into a fourth – if he was lucky – of his lifeline and he already had all the symptoms of a midlife crisis.

He had second thoughts about his lifestyle choice. Because, it seems, his line of work wasn't helping his little brother in the least. But it wasn't like he could take back what he did – or even tell Sasuke about the truth.

Stewing in his own angst for only another few minutes and Itachi sat back up and went to his computer. Cracking his knuckles fairly menacingly at the computer, he pulled himself toward it and popped his neck for good measure. He was, since he got all his _assigned _work for the day done, going to find out this information that was causing, at least in part, his latest headache.

* * *

"God _damn-_" an irate Itachi began but stopped when someone entered the room behind him. Composed demeanor thrown to the wind, he tried recalling it as he glared at the one who interrupted his work.

"It? I think you mean to say?" A sharky grin from shiny pointy molar to shiny pointy molar accompanied these innocent words. Kisame strolled into the room in all his unhealthy shade of blue glory, choosing to flop on the too short couch ungracefully.

If Itachi were any more vexed, he would've flipped the shark the bird. And Itachi very rarely would resort to such crude measures, but his ire was burning. The energy from earlier had quickly dried up, leaving only frustration and disappointment in it's wake.

_Something _was stopping his computer from going as far as he wanted, and it wasn't his programs' limitations, nor was it a really strong firewall. It was… like a cap on his computer!

With renewed vigor, his lithe fingers danced across the keys, a melody not yet reaching its climax. Completely ignoring – not that it was hard – the inquiring look from the couch potato, he went over everything, in great detail, everything on his internal and external hard drives.

And just barely refrained from jumping up and shouting, "Eureka!" when he found what he was looking for. And the only reason he stopped himself was sitting on the couch, looking more curious than ever. Instead he just sighed, pushing the computer away, and got up.

"Still no luck?" Kisame asked, casting a despondent look towards Itachi's computer. He knew of Itachi's obvious frustration with the latent information gathering and was honestly curious if he was getting anywhere. Maybe less honestly and more morbidly – he didn't think an inanimate object could so easily break Itachi's pristine composure, when he had been trying his hardest ever since he met the man.

"No," Itachi replied shortly, keeping on the ensemble of disappointment on as a hunch. "I'm going to take a run for a bit." He slipped the jump drive from the USB port and into his pocket; it wasn't that he didn't trust Kisame with his creations, it was that he didn't trust _anyone _with them.

As soon as he flicked his wrist, locking the door to the tiny rec. room in the basement, he breathed an inaudible sigh of relief. There _was _a cap on his computer – one that was so impressive, his normal scans weren't able to catch it. So whoever put it on was almost as good as he was when tinkering with computers.

As he stretched a few choice muscles, he mentally catalogued _how _something like that could have gotten on his computer. And a cap that could so extensively block only some of his queries and let others easily slide by was the mark of a true genius. It wasn't a generic block on his network, it was actually _on _his computer, and stopped specific signals.

Itachi paused abruptly at this revelation, almost flinging off the back of the treadmill, as his mind went blank. It didn't _watch _what he was doing; it specifically stopped some things from going through, so it didn't need to be maintained. So there was no way anyone would know if he found and deleted it, but then it begged the question – who?

Who could've gotten into his system so easily? Not only that, but the code had to have been input personally, so whoever did it _knows where he is._ So then, who?

His first thoughts – since it had to have come personally – was that it was someone actually _part _of Akatsuki. But none of them would have the skills to do it, because then why would he be needed? So that was quickly discarded, though forlornly – _that _would've made it, though easier, more interesting.

His next thought was it would be someone from Oto. But that couldn't have made any sense; if they knew where he was, why not _contact _him, instead of blocking specific signals?

Itachi groaned; his head hurt. Questions upon question were piling up in his mind, and he had not an answer to any of them. Why was answering one question opening a floodgate to innumerable other questions?

Not in the mood to run anymore, Itachi opted for a hot shower instead to calm his nerves. Scrubbing his face, he was forced to hear one last question: why didn't he tell Kisame about it?

He had no facts _not _to, but he didn't do it anyways, and just couldn't explain why not. It was instinctual, just a gut feeling. Then again, it wasn't in his nature to "talk about his problems," choosing instead to deal with his own problems, by himself.

Getting a few hours of shut eye before he would go visit with Sasuke seemed to be a good idea, so he set his alarm for later that evening before unceremoniously falling into bed, not bothering to put any clothes on. He pulled the comforter up to his chin, placing his jump drive under his pillow, and his eyes fell shut, weeks of exhaustion choosing this moment to pile up on him. But no matter how tired he was, he couldn't seem to shut his mind off.

His mind just kept going over all the little details that have been nagging at him, and not at the forefront was this little "cap" business. If he didn't have enough stress before, then he definitely did now. His mind kept telling him there was no reason not to trust Akatsuki and it's participants, like he had been doing all this time. But his gut was telling him not to trust anyone – he was dealing with criminals after all.

He finally fell into a fitful sleep, hands under the pillow, tightly gripping the metal of his gut feeling.

* * *

**A/N: Viola! Plot filled chapter! On a totally different note, I just had a birthday on Friday the 3rd. Very exciting and I got some pretty neat stuff! And thanks for the continued support in the form of reviews!!**


	5. Break Time

**A/N: I have no excuses for my failures. Well, I do, but nobody probably wants to hear them.**

Chapter 4

Kakashi opened the door to the timid knock, not realizing he was still wearing the frilly apron from his cooking quests. Why he was wearing a frilly apron and why he even _had _a frilly pink apron, Hinata didn't ask. Instead, she barely stifled a giggle, and asked if Sasuke was conscious.

He was, so Kakashi hastily took the affronting apron off of himself and, with_out _a blush, opened the door wider to let the girl into the house. After he closed the door, however, he marched quickly back to the kitchen, all the while mumbling vague obscenities under his breath, about, Hinata could tell, the Uchiha.

Hinata ghosted the steps of the hallway, quickly making her way to the living room Sasuke had virtually lived in for the past few weeks. She honestly felt for him – being cooped up in the house and almost completely bedridden for weeks had to be tough. She knew that when she was sick with mononucleosis last year, she was close to the boiling point of _brain _after only a few days.

At first, when she stepped in the room, she thought Kakashi had been fooling her, saying Sasuke was awake. Because, upon first glance, he looked asleep. But upon closer inspection and despite the languid appearance with relaxed limbs, Sasuke's eyes were open and staring blankly up at the white ceiling. He seemed oblivious to her presence and Hinata could clearly see why – the two white ear buds were clearly visible through his mop of unruly black hair.

She placed the books on the table, jarring the teen out of his reverie. His eyes slid lazily upward looking blankly at Hinata upside-down. Amused, the girl sat down in the offered chair, sighing – it had been a long day.

Sasuke turned the volume down on his iPod, popping one bud out of an ear – not particularly caring if it was considered rude. Hinata didn't seem to mind, for she just pulled the books closer to her person, taking papers out of the top one.

Deftly, Hinata began to explain what had happened in class, with very little input in the form of questions coming from Sasuke, and showed him his homework. Sasuke understood everything just fine, the Latin and History he could, and has, done in his sleep.

After she was done explaining, Hinata packed away the work Sasuke did the night before into her bag, ready to be passed in the next day.

It was a routine, almost, what they had fallen into. Hinata would explain to Sasuke what had happened in all his classes, bringing him his schoolwork and then taking it back when it was finished. Hinata had been unanimously voted for the task – nobody else had nice enough notes of could explain the classes quite as well as Hinata.

She was much better at efficiently _remembering _what had happened in the classes – much better than Naruto, for example. Who, as it turned out, only remembered then things that he wanted to, and it usually had nothing to do with class.

Sasuke was immensely grateful to Hinata for going out of her way to bring his work and tell him what happened in class. It really wouldn't do to get so far behind.

As Hinata had been talking, Nox crept from the kitchen, satisfied with his sabotage for the time being. It wasn't that he didn't _like_ the silver haired man. It was just that he loved his mischief more. And he absolutely enjoyed seeing that man get angry all the time! Plus, he's a cat; he can't consciously be causing mischief, could he?

Belatedly noticing the extra person in the room, Nox pounced over and looked interestedly up at the back of the girl. It was his… second favourite human, Hinata! His favourite was his ward lazing on the couch, but this girl was a close second, since she was much more respectful than those other rumps his ward invites in.

So Nox, being Nox, leapt onto the top of the back of the chair, then off and right into Hinata's lap, effectively scaring the girl. But she calmed immediately when she realized it was just Nox, Sasuke covering a humoured snort only just barely.

"Piece of junk," Sasuke muttered not five minutes later, taking the second ear bud out and placing the device on the table. Hinata looked up from where she was working on her homework, unconsciously rubbing the purring cat in her lap.

"You know," she began quietly. "Using those ear buds will cause you to go prematurely deaf."

"What?" Sasuke asked louder, but rolled his eyes when he realized he was being made fun of. "Not funny," he muttered darkly, beginning to sit up.

Hinata chuckled behind a raised hand, putting her pen down. Her mostly finished assignments slid into her backpack as she leaned back in the chair.

A few clanks, followed by a muffled curse was heated from the vicinity of the kitchen and Hinata raised an amused eyebrow towards Sasuke. Who just closed his eyes for a moment and muttered under his breath, "Don't ask."

Hinata began nodding along just as Kakashi came through the door. "Good!" he rejoiced, spotting the girl. "You'll be staying for dinner, right?"

Hinata, having both no previous experience with Kakashi's cooking, and an excuse _not _to, just shrugged her shoulders. "I guess. I'll need to tell my parents, though…"

Sasuke stopped his ministrations, trying to tell without words "NO!" and dropped his head into his hands dramatically.

"Lovely!" Kakashi said, either ignoring Sasuke or hadn't seen it. "Go call, because it will be ready soon!" He flounced back to the kitchen before turning around in the doorway and setting a glare towards Sasuke, pointing accusingly at the boy. "And I saw that!"

Hinata got up and called her dad, gaining reluctant allowance to stay. When she got back into the living room, Sasuke was scribbling across his homework, already half done. She took and amazed double take, but just wrote it off as being the unnoticed genius he was. An idea forming, Hinata verbalized her thoughts. "When do you think you'll be going back to school?"

Sasuke shrugged unconcerned, as he pen didn't falter in its path. "Doctor said maybe sometime next week. But I won't be off those-" he jabbed a finger toward the crutches propped at the end of the couch –"for a few weeks at least."

Hinata nodded, eyes wide. "So soon? That's good, right?"

Head nodding, Sasuke put down his pen gently. "Very. I hate being cooped up indoors, its driving me stir crazy."

Hinata nodded in understanding as she sat down in the chair. She was glad he was going to be well enough to come back to school; she hated seeing him – or anyone for that matter – suffering. She had learned a lot about Sasuke had been a bit more open in speaking with her.

They were quickly becoming best friends. Hinata knew that she was helping him with a bout of homesickness he didn't even know he was going through. Because she knew a few of the people in his old hometown, personally of through various storied Neji had told her, but it didn't really matter _how;_ it was just that she did and it seemed to help.

And not that she'd ever actually admit it to Sasuke – for fear of freaking him out – it sort of felt like he was an almost surrogate brother to her. Much better than her _actual _sister even, though that wasn't exactly hard, she mused semi-bitterly.

His growth – towards human interaction – in comparison to how he was when he first moved to Konoha, has been exponential. He was still Sasuke, still antisocial and introverted, but was jus a little more... trusting, maybe. Caring, almost.

Hinata looked on with a smile as Kakashi tried to help Sasuke to his feet, but with Sasuke adamant in doing it himself. He accepted his crutches gracefully and with dignity, and stalked towards the kitchen, Nox trailing after him. Kakashi sent Hinata a semi-exasperated, wholly amused look before following Sasuke. Hinata brought up the rear, bemused at the sense of domesticity and comfortableness.

Sasuke awkwardly sat down, slightly cautious of the meal in front of them. While Kakashi hadn't burnt down the house, and was very slowly getting better, Nox had gotten into the amusing habit of getting into the spices. He was fairly certain he had the smartest, most mischievous cat in existence.

After Kakashi served the meal, they all wearily stared at it, Sasuke poking it with his fork, casting questioning glances at Nox, silently asking if there was anything to be wary of.

Kakashi took the plunge with a mouthful, and didn't choke it back up. Quite the contrary, he actually smiled and said enthusiastically, "Hey, this is good!"

The other two cautiously bit it, with similar results. Sasuke still looked accusingly at the fairly smug looking cat, knowing something had to be up.

But everything seemed to be perfectly fine, the dinner atmosphere pleasantly comfortable. Everything until the desert was placed. Sasuke, still being suspicious, didn't want to try anything until Kakashi had tried it out. He snorted when his suspicions were finally confirmed when Kakashi spit out the chocolate onto his plate.

"Salt, not sugar?!"

* * *

**A/N: Yep. Now that I finally have my life under my control, I will get the chance to update in two weeks or less. Also, now that I've finally gotten over that freakin' viral infection that kept me bedridden for a few days, and I have **_**so much **_**free time, I should get back to writing regularly.**

**Thanks to those who reviewed, and those who stuck with me through this… lapse, I guess is the right word. I promise to update more frequently from now on, and my goal will be once every two weeks, probably on a Saturday.**


	6. Life?

**A/N: On time for once! Oh, and please excuse me if the two new(ish) characters are way OOC? It's been forever since I've actually read Naruto, or anything related...**

Chapter V

'"_What is the meaning of life,"_' Sasuke read, pondering; _'"But the meaning of death? The sole purpose of life is to die – it's the one great goal for all living beings…"'_

"What a load of shit," Sasuke muttered, placing his book down with a disgruntled snort. Sure, he had a more intimate relationship with death than most, but even _he _wasn't this pessimistic. Life was much more than a means to an end, because if it wasn't, what was the point in living it?

Sasuke popped out of his emotional contemplation when the doorbell rang, signaling the arrival of a stranger. A stranger, Sasuke thought, because everyone _he _knew knows better than to ring the annoyingly long and loud bell. He made the motions to get up, but when Kakashi walked past, heading for the door, he stopped.

So he just sat up, taking his ear buds out and listening intently to the sound of adult voices. He was immensely surprised when he heard the voice of the officer from before, accompanied by another. Why should he be making a house call?

Sasuke listened as Kakashi led the officers into the house and sure enough, when three people walked in the door, the officer was one of them, followed by a man Sasuke assumed was his working partner.

"I'm sure you remember me, but I'm Detective Genma Shiranui, and this is my partner, Detective Raidou Namiashi. We're here because we wanted to ask you a few questions."

Sasuke adopted a confused expression, looking up at Kakashi. The man just shrugged in return, and Sasuke followed suit, "Sure. What is it that you wanted to ask?"

"Oh, nothing so serious!" The men sat down in the offered chairs as Sasuke's face melted back to automatic blankness. "We just wanted to know a few things that we didn't get a chance to ask you a few months ago. And maybe you'll have remembered a few things."

At Sasuke's acknowledging nod, Genma continued where his partner left off. "We'd really like to know if your family had any enemies? I know we've already asked this, but you may have thought of someone…?"

Sasuke frowned in thought. "I don't know what to tell you – I don't remember any enemies. I know of some business rivals, but that's not what you asked for, is it?"

The two detectives shared a brief look and Genma took out the graphite from between his teeth, poised for writing. "Every little thing can help."

So Sasuke regaled them in just a few words, who the top companies rivaling Uchiha Corporation were, the room completely silent, save his voice and the sounds of lead scratching. When they finished, Raidou spoke up. "Has anyone contacted you in the past few weeks, following your accident? Anyone out of the ordinary, I mean?"

Feigning confusion, Sasuke looked at Kakashi with a frown. "Not that I know of, but I guess I don't know what you mean?"

Genma sighed, leaning forward in his chair. "We have reason to believe that the same person – or persons – who were behind the bombing, were also behind your accident. We still haven't found a connection, but we're getting close. But, for whatever reason, they might have tried to contact you, even if it were just in the form of a letter, a cryptic call, or anything?"

Sasuke slowly shook his head. "I've only been in contact with classmates and the occasional teacher. Not that I know of, anyway," he said, tilting his head questioningly at Kakashi.

The detectives looked at Kakashi, who just shook his head as well. "I'm sorry, but we've had nothing out of the ordinary. Or," he said with a bit of a smirk, "nothing more so than usual."

"Okay," Genma said, somewhat wearily. "Thanks for all your help and cooperation." Genma looked seriously at Sasuke, treating him like an adult, not like a child like most people did. "If you need anything, or if you can think of anything else to add, feel free to call, day or night. We're all working as hard as we can to solve this case."

Sasuke nodded and the two detectives stood up, along with Kakashi. "I'll show you out, then."

They left Sasuke then, alone to his thoughts once more. _'They were fishing,' _he realized, the epiphany coming with the quiet. _'Something is going on, I just don't know what. Yet…'_

* * *

"So, what is it that you were keeping from Sasuke and myself?" Kakashi asked, whispering as he closed the door behind him. The two astonished detectives tried not to gape – they hadn't been that obvious, had they?! "Relax. It's not what you said, but what you didn't. You should just be glad that Sasuke didn't notice."

"Well," Raidou said, shooting a not-so-covert glance towards his partner. At the other man's gesture, he continued. "We've gotten a tip recently, about the Uchiha case. It seems that there is the distinct possibility that someone from the inside of the building set the incredibly high tech bombs, their ranges weren't far enough to detonate from far in the outside. The technology is actually very similar to a serial bomber who's been eluding capture and detection for years.

Kakashi shrugged and raised an eyebrow. "And? What is that supposed to mean to me?"

"Well," Genma continued, taking on a fairly self-assured aura. "There were only Uchiha's in that building, and there was no way for anything to be planted beforehand. So whoever planned all this, may still be alive."

Kakashi's eyes widened. "You can't possibly think it was _Sasuke, _who did it, could you? Impossible!"

"Exactly." At Kakashi's confused frown, Genma broke into a smug smirk. "Sasuke being alive got us thinking – what are the chances of something like that being just a coincidence? Slim to none, right? So we looked and found out he went out to get ice right before the explosion, apparently at the request of someone. And so whoever that someone is, obviously had reservations about what they were doing, maybe they were really close to the boy, but at the last minute cops out and sends him away."

As Kakashi stood, slack jawed at the revelation, Raidou supplied surplus information. "Some of the evidence we've collected has recently gone missing, so we believe in the possibility of a mole within the department, further solidifying our suspicions of the perpetrator being alive. A lot of our investigation has been outside of the office now, and none of this information that we've told you about is in any report – yet. We don't want to tip whoever it is off to our knowledge."

"There is also the slight chance of the unknown man, or woman, who regrets the moment of weakness they had, regarding Sasuke," Genma finished.

Kakashi nodded slowly before his eyes widened and he realized what the detective was insinuating. "You think they're trying to "tie up loose ends"? You're thinking the two incidents are interrelated, right?"

The investigators both looked at each other before nodding simultaneously. "Meaning you'd do well to take heed of this advanced warning. Just keep an extra eye out for anything suspicious, lock your doors and windows at night, and give us a call if anything happens, alright?"

At Kakashi's nod, the men exchanged brief handshakes and farewells. Kakashi watched as the car backed out of the driveway and drove out of sight, just lost in his own thoughts. He was torn as whether or not to tell Sasuke about all that he'd just learned.

Sasuke _did _have the right to know about something this important, especially since it involved his family. But Kakashi was unwilling to purposefully hurt Sasuke if it turned out to be wrong.

Kakashi chuckled darkly to himself – it wasn't just a coincidence that he wasn't married or had kids.

* * *

Sasuke had always cursed his inherent ability to hear just the things he didn't want to hear, and this time was no different. He didn't _want_ to know that the police knew so much – or that they thought it was Itachi trying to kill him. Granted, they didn't know everything he did, as little as he did, but Sasuke was almost afraid it was just a matter of time.

It didn't really register with him that there was solid evidence that it was _Itachi _who'd done everything, since it was he who sent him out for ice. He just couldn't make that connection.

What he did understand was that he had just gotten his brother back – he wasn't ready to give him up yet! A tiny voice in the back of his mind, however, verbalized some of the treacherous thoughts he wouldn't ever dare think when he was awake. _'He left once! Who's to say he won't do it again?'_

Every day, this voice would gain just a little confidence, and his conviction in his brother would waver. But he'd remind himself that Itachi was his _brother, _as if that was enough to keep the doubt and suspicion at bay. He wasn't sure what he was suspicious about, just that it was obvious Itachi was keeping a few fairly important secrets secret.

But even though those secrets seemed to revolve around Itachi, Sasuke didn't care – just so long as he still had family. He didn't care if Itachi was a mass murderer, figuratively speaking of course, just that he still had family.

Sasuke leaned back, scoffing scornfully. Since when had he become so cynical? The metaphorical light dawned and he rolled his eyes, closing their lids. _'Life's never been fair to me. When has that ever changed?'_

* * *

**A/N: Question time: has anyone noticed a change in my writing style? I find it slightly more refined, but I'm really not one to judge. Does anyone have any suggestions to improving either this story, or my writing in general? I would immensely appreciate any help, suggestions, or tips!**

**The reason I ask, is I'm planning a career in writing, and I wanted to know if it was a lost cause, or I could work with it. So thanks in advance!**

**Thanks to those who read/reviewed the last chapter, any and all support is great! I'll keep to the every two week schedule thing, so another update on the weekend of 12.06?**

**Oh, and happy almost Thanksgiving for those who celebrate it!**


	7. First Day Back

**A/N: Wow, I'm actually on time again… Bit of comic relief in this chapter, guess I was feeling silly when I wrote it!**

Chapter VI

"Are you sure you're ready? I mean, you can take off another week, if you need it," Kakashi asked, watching Sasuke hobble around the house, packing up his bag for the following morning.

"For the last time, _yes,_" Sasuke ground out, more than just a little annoyed with Kakashi's pouting. If Sasuke was going back to school, than so was Kakashi, since Kakashi only went in to teach he two classes, every other day.

Sasuke, after weeks of waiting, was finally able to go back to school, but on his crutches. His casts still wouldn't come off for at least another week, but it was a price he was more than willing to pay to get _out. _He had never in his life been so inactive and it was certainly testing – and failing – his sanity.

So when he went to the doctor's that morning, he could've kissed the doctor when she told him he could go back to school. That is, however, if he enjoyed physical contact with almost complete strangers and he didn't mind some sort of pain – the woman didn't exactly welcome physical contact either.

Though he was looking forward to getting out of the house, he wasn't exactly thrilled with the daunting thought of actually interacting with people. Since he'd been bedridden, Sasuke only was forced to deal with people in small doses, as they were "giving him time to heal" or whatever. But he will probably be slightly overwhelmed the following day, getting such a jolt of social interaction after a long vacation, so to speak.

Both dreading and excited for the morning to come, Sasuke finished with what he was doing and laid back on his makeshift bed. As Kakashi was dejectedly climbing the stairs, depressed he wasn't able to sway Sasuke into playing hooky for another week, he nearly froze when a muffled, "Goodnight," was thrown his way. In all the time he'd spent with Sasuke, the boy had never consciously done something like that, wishing him a good night like he'd just done. With a grin and a slight spring in his step, Kakashi finished his jaunt up the stairs, until he remembered why he was depressed in the first place. Head hung, Kakashi opened the door to "his" room, heaved a long-suffering sigh, and closed the door behind him.

* * *

"You're going to be late," Kakashi stated calmly, leaning against the counter and holding his coffee. He was tempted to say more, but Sasuke was already somewhat flustered, and another jab might just drive the boy over the edge – an encounter he, Kakashi, may not live to tell the tale about. But he personally found it endearing that the boy, who was normally so composed, was so anxious. Not visibly, mind, but after getting to know Sasuke, Kakashi could tell he was freaking out, just a little.

"I got that much," Sasuke growled, tying his left shoe with a little difficulty. Much too independent and prideful, he didn't dare ask for help. Favouring his good leg, Sasuke turned and slung his bag over his shoulder, picking up and placing his crutches under his arms in the process. He glared expectantly at Kakashi, who continued to leisurely sip his coffee.

Kakashi waited until he heard a third impatient huff before putting down his mug. Kakashi did _not _get to school on time, but apparently Sasuke was adamant about breaking that nasty habit of his. He picked his keys up from the counter and sighed, maybe he could just drop Sasuke off and circle around the block once or twice?

As soon as Sasuke began unconsciously tapping his foot impatiently, Kakashi spoke, moving towards the door. "C'mon, Mr. Anxious. I'll get _you _to school on time."

Kakashi just laughed at the almost visible question mark hovering above the boy's head. "What? You thought I wasn't purposely late _every_ day? Would'a been one hell of a coincidence, being accidentally late all the time. I have a reputation to uphold now, you know?"

Sasuke just rolled his eyes, scorn and sarcasm dripping from the look. He followed Kakashi out the door, slightly less gaily and more subdued and awkward. He belatedly remembered the comment Kakashi had just made – about his being anxious. Not only was he angry that he was apparently so easy to read, but was a little unnerved that Kakashi had come to know him well enough that he could even tell when Sasuke was anxious.

Actually, not only did it unnerve him _a lot,_ but also he realized that he had actually formed attachments with the man who annoyed him so much, though not more than some of his "friends." He tucked that eerie thought away into the back of his mind and slammed

* * *

Sasuke glared at both everything and everyone. The second he shimmied out of Kakashi's rust bucket, his supposed friends and others surrounded him, leaving him with no means to escape. He looked over at the only slightly apologetic Hinata and mouthed, "Traitor."

When Hinata had come to give him his homework the night before, Sasuke had told her he'd be coming back in the morning. And she'd apparently told everyone and their uncles – or just Naruto, who was more of a gossip that both Sakura and Ino combined when it came to something he wasn't supposed to tell anyone.

And she had the audacity to look smug! Sasuke felt nauseous, being jostled around by both his "friends" and the people he had never talked to, or even knew who they _were._ Thankfully, or unluckily, depending on the point of view, Naruto came to the rescue, parting the crowd with his eloquent words. "Everyone move, outta the way, let the cripple though!"

Any lesser person would be mortified by the slur, but Sasuke was just thankful people actually started to give him some breathing room, and weren't drowning his ears in fake sympathies and unfelt questions, only morbidly curious of what had happened and why he had gone.

Sasuke's backpack was ripped ungracefully from his back, and he was only just able to remain upright. Naruto grinned good-naturedly, though slightly mocking, as he clapped Sasuke on the shoulder. Unfazed by the glare Sasuke threw him, Naruto was stubborn about helping Sasuke carry his books to class.

"I'm your friend, right?" Naruto didn't even wait for Sasuke to vehemently disagree before continuing on his diatribe. "Right. And as your friend, I have certain duties to attend to, so I'm not considered a bad friend. Understand?"

Sasuke peered at Naruto for a moment as they walked, hobbled, up the front stairs, before it clicked. "Someone you're meaning to impress with your-" he made awkward air quotes when they stopped to wait for the door to open, "-"Sensitive" side, is it?"

It seemed that Sasuke hit the nail on the head, for Naruto's face dusted with pink and he looked embarrassedly about, not looking at anything in particular. "Maybe," he said evasively, after a long, pregnant pause.

Just a few strides later and the two reached the bottom of the stairs. Sasuke cursed the low budget school for not having an elevator as he slowly made his way upward, one step at a time. He was suddenly thankful someone else had his bag, because he was sure he wouldn't have been able to balance properly with the books on his back.

At the top of the stairs, very few people were mulling about, so Sasuke didn't need to be mindful of peoples feet as he went past – not that he ever was anyway. They got to their class just after the first bell and only a couple of minutes until the final bell.

Sasuke took his bag and took his seat in the back of the room, away from the curious eyes looking in his direction. Kakashi had said that he would get Sasuke's note from the office, excusing his absences, and though he was grateful, it was a fair bit too… domestic for his likings.

Pushing all thoughts from his mind, Sasuke lay his head on the desk, hopeful in catching a few zzz's before Kakashi showed up. Since his anxiousness had faded, exhaustion had overcome him halfway up the stairs, causing him to not be in a position to notice the concerned looks his "friends" in the class exchanged.

* * *

"I can handle it. It isn't like I'm going to fall down the stairs," Sasuke said stubbornly to the small group of people around him. Naruto was looking at him just as stubbornly, arms crossed over his broad chest and a frown firmly in place. He wouldn't budge from _his _position either.

"I'm not saying I'm going to carry you; I'm just saying I'll help you," Naruto said, uncharacteristically stern. "Or at least let me carry your bag."

Sasuke closed his eyes and mentally counted to ten. When that proved insufficient, he want to ten and sighed. Did they really think him that incapable? "It is just a flight of stairs. If we don't get moving, we'll be late to class. Can you just move?"

Naruto stayed firm and looked at the others for support. Ino had left with Chouji and Shikamaru, claiming that they would be late for their next class, on the other side of the school. Hinata was right alongside Naruto, believing Sasuke was still too injured to go down all the stairs. Sakura was torn between believing in Sasuke and, though she was _so _over her crush, the possibility of helping him down the stairs. Lee, bless his youthful soul, was all but crying alligator tears at the strength of Sasuke's youthfulness. And Gaara stood off to the side, seemingly utterly uninterested in the proceedings.

"Just come _on,_" Naruto said, grabbing at Sasuke's backpack strap. Sasuke knew the effort was futile, and couldn't help but watch what happened with morbid fascination.

Naruto had pulled too hard, and Sasuke had braced himself on his crutches, meaning when Naruto finally gave up, his momentum, or whatever force seemed to be against him that day, pulled him backwards – right off the stairs. As if moving in slow motion, Naruto windmilled his arms, almost comically, and before anyone had the chance to grab onto him, he disappeared over the horizon of the top step.

After what looked like an incredibly painful flight, Naruto stopped at the landing, halfway down. He lay on his back, looking pensively up at the ceiling.

At the top of the stairs, everyone stood frozen, expressions ranging from horror to amusement, concern to indifference. When Naruto sat up, looking confusedly up at them, like he wasn't quite sure what had just happened, it had broke the trance and everyone but Sasuke and Gaara rushed down the stairs to see if Naruto was okay.

Sasuke exchanged fairly amused glances with Gaara before he spoke, amazement and sarcastic mirth lacing his every word. "I had no idea the whole "magical thinking" thing actually worked…"

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for the feedback from the last chapter, it was greatly appreciated!! I hope everyone (who celebrates it) had a nice Thanksgiving, I know I did. Played **_**loads **_**of video games, which was great!**

**Oh, and the whole, "magical thinking" thing is when you wish for something to happen so badly, that it does. There is a story behind it, but I won't delve into the finer details at this time.**

**Another update on 12.20? **


	8. The Plot Thickens

**A/N: Enjoy. **

Chapter VII

There was a faint buzzing. Now, this buzzing wasn't particularly loud; if Itachi were to roll over, he probably wouldn't be able to hear it. But the point was, he _could _hear it, which didn't bode well for his mood.

So Itachi rolled over and peered blindly up at his alarm clock. Sitting innocently atop his bedside table, the clock remained blissfully silent, and Itachi frowned lightly. If it wasn't his alarm clock that was plotting his demise, than what was buzzing?

Sitting up, the sleep washed away from his eyes and ears and Itachi's frown deepened minutely. The ringing wasn't coming from his room. It was, if Itachi's guess was correct – which it most likely was – coming from the kitchen.

With an almost melancholy sigh, Itachi got up and dressed, placing the items from under his pillow into his pocket and the waistband of his jeans then went to investigate this mysterious buzzing. He ghosted through the hallways and paused at the kitchen doorway with a vague look, akin to incredulity.

A big, slightly blue-skinned man was standing in the middle of the room, covered in what Itachi hoped was flour, with a thoroughly confused look on his face. His "Kiss the Cook" apron was askew, hanging from him like a cape, and his hair pointing in every direction. Itachi could only watch as Kisame looked despairingly around himself and the snowy kitchen.

It took Kisame almost a minute before his eyes slid past the door, where they quickly moved back to and he, if Itachi didn't know better, squeaked, jumping almost a foot in the air, a cloud of powder lifting in his wake. Placing a hand over his rapidly beating heart, Kisame glared half-heartedly at Itachi, who wore a look of almost amusement. "Almost gave me a frikken' heart attack," Kisame said gruffly, his guttural voice still an octave too high.

"Think you could do something about the alarm? It's beginning to give me a headache," Itachi replied, slight pressure building behind his eyes. Admitting his humanity a tad harder than he had thought.

"Oh," was all he got for a verbal response, and Kisame turned and smacked the frantically buzzing clock above the stove. It spluttered and died valiantly, it's vain attempts of help falling upon deaf ears. Itachi breathed an inaudible sigh of relief before looking around the room a bit more critically than his previous sweep.

"What _happen ­–_ You know what? I don't want to know. I really don't," Itachi said, turning to leave while shaking his head and trying to mentally block out the image. He left Kisame in the kitchen, looking indignant, and made his way for the study – if he wasn't able to sleep, then he might as well get some work done.

* * *

In the kitchen, Kisame looked about the room in disgust. Playing stupid was almost scarily too easy, an ironic fact that wasn't, surprisingly, lost on him.

He honestly didn't like playing Itachi that way, he had a great deal of respect for the other – and they were friends, damn it, no matter how vehemently Itachi protests – but it was an order. And if there was one thing Kisame did, it was to follow orders, since he knew firsthand the consequences of insubordination.

Leader didn't trust Itachi. Kisame wasn't "in the loop" enough to know why, and was sure it was all a mistake, but there was something about the whole ordeal that smelt fishy. On his knees cleaning, Kisame stopped to snicker at his own pun before his train of thought took off again.

Itachi seemed as straight as they come. He legitimately wanted to be part of the syndicate, and did everything asked of him with startling precision and accuracy. Talented to the point of inhumanity, virtually no feelings to cloud his judgement, and obedient as anyone _could _be, Kisame didn't know what it was that Itachi could have done, to warrant such distrust.

Finding the room spotless again, Kisame looked despondently at the remnants of the flour bag. He had pulled it open only slightly too hard and made it snow flour. Kisame cracked his fingers, then his spine for good measure, before pulling the second bag of flour towards him. Such a lowly ingredient wouldn't make a fool of him twice!

* * *

Itachi finished booting up his computer, but paused before he placed his flash drive in the USB port. Maybe he was just being paranoid, which he blamed – like most things – on his parents, but maybe there was something to the cautiousness that was festering in the pit of his stomach.

He understood that being completely trusted, within a cartel no less, was a false hope, but messing with his _computer _was way too far for just a little mistrust. He knew of nothing he did to justify constant vigilance – especially on the tool he used to work for _them._

The saying "mistrust breeds mistrust" has never before been so right. Since Itachi's epiphany that he was under suspicion of _something, _he'd been sleeping lightly, and with a little insurance in the form of a .38 Smith & Weston, but acting just as normally as he would, had the conditions been better.

It wasn't like he had anywhere else to go, even if he'd felt so inclined. Not only was he supposed to be _dead, _but also the head of the rival cartel had some sort of personal vendetta against him. He didn't know who he'd pissed off _there_, but it was certain they were looking for him.

He didn't like it. Didn't like all the unknowns, all of the what ifs or could be's, and it was seriously beginning to piss him off.

He _would _get to the bottom of this.

* * *

Somewhere, underground and in an undisclosed location miles away, two people were having a conversation. Or, to be more specific, one was giving a report and the other was sitting serenely in a large chair.

"… though we haven't been able to lock in on his location – something is messing with our frequencies. We have the brother's house under constant surveillance, but he hasn't tried to pass through. We do have confirmation that he is still in the city, though," the man standing finished, barely hiding a grimace at the lack of potent information.

The man sitting then spoke, trilling his S's, and clenching his fists. "Then work harder to find his location. You know the importance of this, correct?" he hissed dangerously.

"Of course, sir. I understand – we will triple our efforts into the search." The man, boy really, standing, bowed respectfully, and want to leave the room. Just as he reached the door, he was stopped by a silky malevolence.

"Be sure you do, Kabuto."

Kabuto, with his hand on the doorknob, matched the malice with his own vicious smirk. "Certainly, Orochimaru, sir."

* * *

As soon as Itachi's work was finished – and in record time – he was about to begin his search, but he had a feeling. Similar to a "sixth sense," or so affectionately dubbed as his "Spidey Sense" by Sasuke when he was a kid, Itachi's gut feelings were never wrong.

So he closed his laptop silently and floated out of the room, not making a sound. He stopped just outside of Kisame's door and, like a kid who just couldn't help himself, pressed his ear against the jam.

"Nothing out of the ordinary… He's just working in the study; I tried talking to him earlier but he was too absorbed in his work and didn't even notice me… No, I don't think so… But _why? _What could he have done?… Oto? No way, not Itachi," Kisame's voice was barely heard, almost completely muffled, but Itachi heard it with startling clarity. They thought he was a _traitor? _ And that he was in league with _Oto?_

Kisame had apparently turned away from the door – or realized that he was speaking just a bit too loud – but either way, the only thing Itachi was able to hear was a garbled mess. It sounded as if Kisame was genuinely distressed about what he was hearing. But Itachi had to remind himself how easy it was to feign emotion – he did it on a daily basis.

He made it back to the study in a daze – suspicion of treason was definitely a motive for bugging his computer; he was lucky he wasn't actually dead. The "why" was bothering him, however – _how _could he be in league with the same bastards who maimed his brother? Blankly, he stared at his computer screen, the chronic headache was finagling it's way into his mind, and body, yet again.

What should he do now?

* * *

"Understood." Kisame hung up his cell phone with a suffering sigh. Leader's logic was warped sometimes, but he did make a few valid points. He had poised the question that Kisame had held within his skull for the past few weeks: "Why else would Oto be so interested in Itachi? He's good, but not that good."

Kisame agreed to continue the façade of watching Itachi, though he wasn't sure why he was picked for this assignment. Sure he was technically Itachi's working partner, but his expertise was more off-kilter – where he readily used more of his brute strength to gain intell than the rest of the group. It didn't lie within the realms of espionage and secrecy, that just wasn't in his character, subtlety not his strong suit.

Despite those facts, however, he still agreed. He wasn't about to disobey a direct order, because that was what it was. He didn't say, though, that he would betray Itachi's trust further than that.

In the world of lying and murder, Kisame figured Itachi needed _someone _on his side.

* * *

**A/N: Plot filled chapter!!! This was probably one of my favourite chapters thus far, just 'cause I think I did a good job writing it. Input?**

**Anywho, thanks to those who reviewed, the last chapter seemed to go over quite well. Another two weeks until my next update? BUT, I may get in the mood over vacation, so I might blitz you all with a chapter, or a holiday thing…**

**Happy holidays to everyone who celebrates them. I got to go to school on Monday, and Tuesday, which blows… Anyway, enjoy!**


	9. Cookoff

**A/N: Oh my. I am SO sorry this is so late. I had family troubles, then it was midterms, then one of my teachers died, so I was kind of devastated. I am a failure at life, but I hope whoever is still reading this enjoys it. That and I'm sorry this was so short. Gah...  
**

Chapter VIII

Sasuke was vaguely aware something bad was going to happen. Déjà vu, intuition, call it what you will, Sasuke had the distinct impression that he should _not _have gotten up this morning.

This foreshadowing revelation hit him while he was in study hall, easily catching up on previous assignments. In the quiet room, the audible tick-tock of the clock reverberated around, bouncing off his tired, full skull.

But with his mind full of Shakespeare and Latin vocabulary, he was able to somewhat tune out all other minor annoyances – except that damned clock. Maybe it was some sort of higher power trying to tell him to get his mind off his work and pay a bit more attention to his surroundings. Or maybe it was just karma coming back to bite him in the ass.

Sasuke easily dismissed the latter, however, as he was pretty sure he was even in the cosmic balance of things after his near death experience. So he extracted himself from the tragic lives of Romeo and Juliet, and glanced about him in surprise.

There was virtually nobody in the room. The teacher, Kakashi of course, was nowhere to be found, though that wasn't uncommon; there was a kid sleeping in the back of the room, and a pair of giggling girls transpiring sinisterly around the boy.

Sasuke winced in sympathetic pain for guy before the feeling of dread sneaked upon him again. _Something _was about to go wrong, yet he couldn't for the life of him figure out what.

Then, twin yells of "Sasuke~!" were heard from the door and all Sasuke's suspicions were confirmed. He should _not _have gotten up this morning.

* * *

Since he wasn't in the position to be physically able to run away, Sasuke was coerced into joining Ino and Sakura in the empty Home Ec. Room.

Apparently some idiot managed to get the brilliant idea of a baking contest into two of the most competitive girls in the school's minds. Sasuke firmly believed that the person should be drawn and quartered, tar and feathered, or something equally horrific and barbaric – if only because Sasuke was in that kind of mood now.

It was just a hunch, but Sasuke was inclined to blame Naruto. He didn't know why, but it seemed like the right thing to do.

_Why _the two females – though Sasuke was using the term loosely – needed _his _opinion, was beyond comprehension. He had never before expressed a need to judge a juvenile cookie baking contest, so all he could conclude was that someone hated him. A lot.

* * *

Less than six and a quarter minutes (Sasuke was counting) and Sasuke was vividly reminded of Kakashi's cooking skills.

Not the smell, no that was fine, but the _mess._ Flour was everywhere, grease was smeared in everyone's hair – even Sasuke's, something he wasn't certain how it happened, but he know it wasn't an accident – and what _looked _like an egg yolk stuck on the ceiling.

'_I don't even _like _sweets!'_ he whin-manly yelled within his mindscape. More than once he had tried to sneak off from this prison, but he was caught, literally, with one foot out the door.

But every protest fell upon deaf ears. Sasuke vaguely wondered when he became inaudible as his crutches were taken – quite forcibly – and placed halfway across the room, too far of a distance to try hopping, not that he'd ever actually hop. That was much too undignified for an Uchiha such as himself.

He found himself almost wishing for the Sakura and Ino he first met. The ones that were completely in love with him and who wouldn't even think of manhandling him like that. Or they would but with different contexts… He broke off from that train of thought with a shudder. At least the old duo would _listen _to him.

Resigned to his fate, Sasuke placed his chin in his hand and sighed as his torture commenced.

* * *

"You're going down. My recipe is the best – much better that any garbage that you could have made," the blonde girl said smugly, pushing her plate of cookies towards Naruto and Sasuke.

Somehow, in the past couple of minutes, Naruto had snuck into the room – which raised Sasuke's suspicions of him being the brilliant idiot who suggested the torture. Didn't confirm them because Naruto had an innocently excited face and Sasuke still wasn't able to tell if Naruto was that deceptive or not.

Still, it was suspicious. So Sasuke logged the incident into the back of his mind for further investigation at a later time.

Setting his suspicions aside for the time being, Sasuke watched in amusement as Sakura and Ino began their lame trash talking. He had no idea girls were so _mean _over something as petty as a cooking contest. He wondered what they would be like over something important and restrained a shudder. It would not be a very pretty sight.

"At least I didn't get mine out of a trashy tabloid magazine! Lets have our judges decide who's the best then!" Sakura retorted, hands on hips and a glaring frown marring her pretty face.

Naruto greedily grabbed two of each and gobbled them up without a second thought. Sasuke, however, was slightly more wary, being subjugated to Kakashi's cooking for the past couple of weeks, and hesitantly picked one up, taking barely a nibble out of it.

And quickly spat it out with a grimace. Naruto wasn't as lucky to have such a small taste of the poison; seconds after he inhaled all four cookies, he bent at the waist and began gagging, holding his throat dramatically.

Both girls looked on in despair and confusion before each grabbing one of their own cookies and taking a hesitant tastes. They threw distrustful looks towards each other as their taste buds were accosted with a bitter, disgusting mess.

"You sabotaged my recipe!" they yelled in unison, pointing accusingly at each other. Sparks figuratively flew as their glaring contest intensified, and Naruto sulkily pouted, murmuring something about females, their competitive natures, and foiled plots to rule the world through cookie consumption.

The last gave Sasuke a small pause for worry before shrugging it off – Naruto was just being Naruto. This time – when Sasuke tried to escape – he didn't even make it to his crutches; apparently Sakura and Ino were going to start from scratch – again.

Sasuke really shouldn't have gotten up this morning.

* * *

Itachi rationalized, as he mindlessly sorted through his files, that he should have just stayed in bed this morning. He still had no leads – on anything – and he figured he was going blind from staring at a computer screen for so long, since they were having trouble focusing, even with the aid of glasses.

That and he had an asinine fish-boy/man bothering him every thirty seconds because he was _bored._ It was just a ruse, Itachi was easily able to infer, and he was really checking up on him. Kisame, as clueless as he acted, was actually deceptively shrewd and cunning, Itachi also realized.

Kisame wasn't yet at Itachi's level of nonchalance and blasé attitude, but he was getting closer all the time. Itachi would just have to keep a close eye on him in the future.

Itachi was a man of multitasking. While his fingers slipped through a programming book, his eyes drifted across files pertaining to various illicit activities of a certain underground syndicate known for snakes, and his mind was in a completely different place al together. His mind was, ironically, on the family he'd never get back. On the family he missed, sure, but would never regret his actions against them. He supposed it was altruistic to think that he did what he did for the safety of others who would've surely been hurt by them.

Them being the Uchiha Corporation.

But he was really only picking the lesser of two evils, choosing Akatsuki over the "family business." The family business that he was molded to take over after Fugaku either retired – which was unlikely – or died – which was more likely.

He wasn't being groomed for just any underground cartel; no, he was being polished for _the _underground cartel, the leader of them all. The most cutthroat and vile humans on the planet would be supping with him, and it was too much of a risk – since he had one huge vulnerability – Sasuke. He wouldn't put it past his own "family" to harm the boy to bend Itachi's will in their favour, for their own bidding.

Itachi wasn't much of a leader, anyways. He enjoyed dirtying his hands and working from the shadows. Too much responsibility might accidentally corrupt him past saving. He at least had some humanity left within his soul. Albeit, not much, but still some.

Plus, he didn't want Sasuke involved in this sort of life. He didn't want Sasuke thinking badly of the family he adored – but had no idea what lay behind all those cool facades.

Itachi sighed before typing into his computer a new function for his program. He really shouldn't have gotten out of bed this

* * *

**A/N: I might go back and re-edit this chapter, but I'm not in the mood right now. This chapter was dedicated to my grade six English teacher – you will be missed!**

**Next week is vacation, and I PROMISE to update very soon, within a week. **

**2.11.2009**


	10. The Calm

**A/N: No comment.**

Chapter IX

The cool night air filtered in through the open window, gently tousling Sasuke's hair. The boy in question was languidly sleeping on the couch, iPod on, in the dark living room.

Only his eyes weren't closed and he was staring blankly at the ceiling.

With many thoughts constantly running through his head, Sasuke found the peacefullness of night to be a prime time to sift through his many thoughts, doubts, fears and concerns. Not that he had many fears, but he'd been having a reoccurring nightmare lately about mutant food trying to eat him that really needed to be analyzed.

Plus, his body was used to the small amounts of sleep, so he didn't really mind. That and he was healed enough to function on the smaller amounts of sleep with little difficulty.

Digressions aside, Sasuke was up and awake long after Kakashi had said goodnight, shortly after midnight, and he seemed to be waiting for something.

Or, quite possibly, some_one_.

With a gentle rustle of fabric, Sasuke was no longer alone. His eyes slowly descended upon the figure, not surprised to see his - until recently – thought-dead brother.

"Sasuke," the figure whispered by way of greeting, inclining his head.

Said boy returned the gesture, offhandedly inquiring about the elder's week. But it was said with such nonchalance that it gave Itachi reason to pause. Was there something wrong?

But Itachi didn't voice his concerns, instead just replying with more than just a few edits. Somehow, though, Itachi had the distinct impression Sasuke knew that.

Small talk continued for a while longer, the conversational foreplay, dancing around the topic that Sasuke really wanted to delve into. Until he just couldn't hold the question that had been burning his mind for days in – "What is it exactly, that you do?"

Startled by the loaded question, Itachi didn't show it, nor did he react to the pure _knowing _the boy's voice held. Just as he opened his mouth to answer, though he wasn't sure _how _he was about to answer, he heard a curious noise.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Shuffling footsteps.

Itachi was at the window in a breath, looking back helplessly at Sasuke. Who snorted noiselessly – he wasn't fooling anyone, the relief was plain in the elder's gaze – and rolled his eyes, flicking his fingers at the window.

Just a gust and he was gone, the whisper of "Sorry," floating around the silent room, the footfalls reaching the top of the stairs.

…

"Sasuke?" Kakashi softly called out, upon reaching the bottom of the stairs. He had just been woken from a particularly good dream about one of his favourite books, by the sounds of a voice, or voices. But wouldn't Sasuke have told him if he were expecting guests?

Instead of answering, Sasuke pretended he hadn't heard – though he _had _– and continued singing under his breath, music blaring in his ears. He didn't open his eyes until he felt Kakashi looming over him. When he peered up in the dim light, he flinched and swore. "What the fuck?!"

Bemused, Kakashi raised his hands in a non-threatening manner. "Have you been singing to yourself all night? I had thought I heard voices, but you were just… singing?" he finished, a slight mocking lilting his voice.

A small, not-really-there reddening of his cheeks and Kakashi had his answer. Snickering slightly, Kakashi mussed Sasuke's hair, smirking at the indignant, _manly _squawk. "Get some sleep, you have school in the morning." He went back to the stairs and waved a lazy hand. "Night."

Sasuke waited until Kakashi was at the top before uttering an almost non-existent, "Night." He waited until he heard the door to the guest– Kakashi–'s room before sighing in relief. He thanked whatever deity that would listen for the few weeks of theater class he took. It could have turned out badly if he wasn't able to casually convince Kakashi he was being uncool.

It wasn't until much later – or much too early, depending on perspective – that Sasuke realized what the burning in his gut was. Guilt. He felt bad for lying to Kakashi.

He rolled over. This was _so _not what he needed right now.

* * *

It took Kakashi the entire fumbling walk back to his room to realize something with and electrifying jolt. It was _two_ different voices he heard. Not one.

When his head touched the pillow again not two minutes later, he realized with similar shocking clarity that he wouldn't be getting much sleep from now on.

* * *

Morning shone bright and early with a cloudless sky, and two tired and quiet occupants of Sasuke Uchiha's house. Though for very different reasons, were they quiet. Kakashi, after laying back in his bed, spent valuable sleeping time trying to place the other voice he heard.

It was hauntingly familiar. He knew he must have heard it before, but he couldn't place it to a face to save his life. And if there was one thing he prided himself on, was his quick mind. That appeared to finally be failing him.

Sasuke, however, wasn't trying to remember anything – he was trying to forget. After his revelation and his guilt, Sasuke couldn't get the feeling out of his mind. Why should he have felt guilty? He didn't care about Kakashi's feelings…

Did he?

He was beginning to wonder. Wonder all the ifs and whats, until one struck a particularly painful chord within him – was this what family was supposed to be like?

His relationship, though close, with Itachi wasn't conventional, to say the least. Itachi genuinely cared, most of the time, and when their parents were away, Itachi often had to take over the position of "parent."

It was complicated, sure, and they _were _brothers, but when he was with his parents, he didn't get that distinct feeling family should give. It was strained, and though they loved and cared for him in that silent, almost unfriendly way most of the Uchiha were ingrained with, it wasn't the same.

But Kakashi seemed to genuinely care. In his own, awkward, sarcastic way. And it was easy to see. To feel. Sasuke didn't have to search for it like he had to with his parents, and sometimes even his brother – because for all intents and purposes, he _was _and Uchiha, and Uchiha's do _not _wear their hearts on their sleeves, like normal people.

And so the atmosphere within Sasuke Uchiha's house was lethargic and quiet. Kakashi, tired and frustrated; Sasuke, stubborn and in denial. But both parties were conspicuously completely unaware of the others' attitudes. All except the middle party, staring with curiosity at the two sullen and somber humans.

* * *

Nox was a cat. And as a cat, he demanded that certain needs be met. One being enough attention must be paid on a daily basis. And today, it appeared, he was lacking.

So he decided to remedy this situation immediately.

* * *

Sasuke had a sudden sense of foreboding an instant before he saw Nox stalking across the counter behind Kakashi. He realized, with a sickening pang of dread, that anything he could say or do would be too late.

* * *

"MWRAWRR!!"

With a terrific war cry, as if entering battle, Nox launched his lithe body – after a good running start, of course – at the back of the human who wasn't his ward's head. Just as the man was to take a sip of his coffee. His _hot _coffee.

And for the next half hour, Sasuke Uchiha's quiet house was full of angry yells of "Get the hell off, demon cat!", "I'm gonna kill you!" and a few choice phrases that even Kakashi was too young to know. An amused bout of chuckles would begin every time the silence reigned for more than a few seconds.

The tension and troubles of the two melted away with the aid of a smug black cat, and were soon forgotten in the amiable atmosphere that had begun to settle between Sasuke and Kakashi in the time they'd been coexisting in the same vicinity.

A smug cat indeed.

* * *

"Ah… sir?" Sakura raised a tentative hand, cautious but curiosity ultimately winning out. Cautious because Kakashi seemed to be in a surprisingly dreadful mood. It was quite unlike the usually good-natured laid-back teacher they had all come to know and… well, not love, but like and respect. And curious? Well, that was just the nature of one Sakura Haruno. She disliked mysteries almost as much as she disliked blonde pigs.

Kakashi gave the girl a level look, willing her to just try and ask, before his gaze flittered to the rest of the room, looking just as curious and eager to know why their teacher had lots of angry scratches running up and down his arms, as well as a few across the uncovered portion of his face. They could only guess the rest of him was in a similar predicament. His gaze rested on the pale and smirking Uchiha a second longer before it hardened and fell back on the speaker. "Yes, Miss Haruno?"

"Well, uh, you see -" she began before the blond dolt sitting behind her, using absolutely no tact, spoke the question on everyone's mind.

"What happened to your face?"

The room turned deathly silent. In the very back of his mind, in a _very _tiny voice, Kakashi seriously wondered about the boy's mental health. He seemed like the type of kid that would go kick a bull, but forget to run away afterwards. "Uzumaki. Office. Go."

Naruto gaped, like a fish out of water, maybe finally realizing his mistake, one could only hope, but no – "What'd I say-"

"Now."

Self-preservation seemed to kick in – or the deadly looks being given to him by Sakura were finally registering somewhere in his brain – because he grabbed his bag and left the room quickly, tail between his legs (metaphorically speaking, of course).

"Okay," Kakashi began, attention back on the class as a whole. "Does anyone have anything else to say regarding my face?"

Eighteen simultaneous head shakes – every person except one – and Kakashi smiled coldly, not that anyone could tell, since it didn't reach his eye. "Then I believe we can continue the lesson…"

* * *

"That's all, Kabuto? How disappointing." Contempt laced the silky words.

Frustrated, "I know, Orochimaru, sir. I'm sorry. But my informants tell me that they caught a bit of movement outside the brother's window, very late last night. We're trying to confirm the identity – if it was a person. He's good, sir." Quieter and resentful. "Really good. Cautious."

Infuriated. "I know that, Kabuto!" A bang, the sounds of flesh striking something hard. "Damn it. Put all your efforts into it now. Get everyone involved."

"Everyone? Even…?" Hesitant but strangely hopeful in this tense setting.

"Do not fail me again, Kabuto. We don't have much time left."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Sasuke sat, staring at the ceiling later that night. His mind was welcomingly calm, but it was like the calm before the storm. There was just so much he didn't know, so much he wanted to, and it was eating away at him.

Itachi was lying to him.

Or just not telling him the truth. He recognized the white truths, the white lies, since he knew Itachi best, and in their wake came question upon question. But one statement in particular sung out as fact among all the confusion.

He didn't know his brother at all.

* * *

**A/N: Don't throw anything! I'm sorry for taking so long, but a lot of things have been going on lately, and I wasn't sure I would come out on top this time. But I did! And its longer than normal! With all this intrigue! - I hope people are actually still reading this… -**

**Anyway, I'm back in the swing of things, so I'll start actually updating every other weekend. If anyone really cares enough, they can periodically bug me about it. **

4.11.2009


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